Enough Express Already
When the Washington Post first started its free Express magazine, I was a skeptic. I figured it was another way for the Post to prop up is declining market share and scare off any free daily competition.
So far, I’ve been proved right; the Express is the Post as written for USA Today readers. It hasn’t stemmed the slide of the Post circulation, and could even be a reason for it.
No matter what its rationale, there is no reason for the Express to be causing this mess.
Enough trees already die for the Post’s unread classified ads, killed by Criagslist, eBay, and the like, or entire papers that clog my building’s recycle bin.
The Post need not over print and over stuff in a sad attempt to over sell its Express readership too.
I absolutely love the Express for taking on the Metro, it’s great basic news coverage and local interest. It’s a good service that’s likely not costing the post a dime, as the advertising probably covers the cost and then some. As for overprinting? yeah, that’s a problem, but I’d rather have a few extra than be out of papers at noon.
I love reading Express. It’s just right for my morning Metro ride, and gives me the crossword to do on my way home! I don’t know where that photo was taken, but I know that quite often, my stop is out of papers before I arrive.
If the picture was taken downtown – I know a lot of folks tend to pickup the paper out in what Wayan likes to call the blackhole of suburbia – and then instead of filling up the WMATA trash/recycling bins – the put it in the DC station’s Express bin as they leave a station for work.
Yes, me too. It is a big disappointment for me to find an empty Express box, when I head into the metro for a long ride into the city. Looks like a stop on the Yellow line. Those Alexandria people don’t like the Express?
This is the Huntington Station, Huntington Ave exit, on Friday around 5:30pm – see the Flickr page for all the details.
One day Nokia will add geotagging to its phones and we can have Google Map links for each photo.
Until then, I still find Express to be the USA Today of the WashPost media products, and when I see Metro stations strewn with its carcasses, annoyed by the waste.
I admit that is a pet peeve of mine – whether it is an issue of Express, the WashPost, WashTimes or Examiner, people are just too damn lazy to carry their paper (or trash) to the bins that are there for that purpose. For God’s sake, they are placed on the way to the escalator up or on the way out from the metro card gates!
My question is: do we enable the lazy people by picking up their leave-behinds, as being responsible citizens, or do we let it be, thus being as bad as the lazy people, and still complain?
For the record, I love the Samurai Sudoku they run on Fridays. (Five grids, overlapping at the corners.) Also, I’m sure our parents and relatives still have several copies of the issue that ran our picture and story right before our wedding, so I suppose it’s good for something…